Panasonic enters handheld gaming with the Jungle

Panasonic, or rather Panasonic Cloud Entertainment, last night revealed the Jungle: a new handheld video game console designed for MMORPGs. The device will allegedly sport a high-resolution display, a full QWERTY keyboard along with dual touch-sensitive D-pads, and may run atop a custom Linux build (not Android). The Jungle will also apparently feature a mini HDMI port, a micro USB port, and a 3.5mm headphone jack. Alongside the system itself, Panasonic will launch a Battlestar Galactica title (made by Bigpoint), a weekly web show called Online Underground (thanks to a partnership with Machinima.com), and of course support for third party developers.

The Jungle already has its own website, pics, a few teaser videos (including a look at the Battlestar Galactica title), and even a jingle on the MTV show Rob Dyrdek's Fantasy Factory. We've included said media after the jump, courtesy of Ars Technica, Gizmodo, Engadget, and the official device's website.

Panasonic is keeping as many details as it can secret, so beyond what we've already mentioned and speculated, all there is to say is that the focus appears to be online gaming and the cloud. That doesn't have us particularly excited, but we'll wait till we hear more (specifications, more game titles, and a price would be nice) before giving our final verdict.